Muslim woman in urban space: between tradition, emancipation and retraditionalization

Abstract

The aim of this research is to point out the changes that occurred in the behaviour patterns of Muslim women through three different generations. Although the research included 12 women and the results cannot be completely relevant, an effort was made to investigate the extent to which the processes of industrialization, urbanization and emancipation reflected on the lives of Muslim women in Sarajevo. Women who came to Sarajevo as adults, women who moved to Sarajevo as children, and women who were born in Sarajevo but whose grandmothers (and mothers) were born in the countryside, participated in the research. The results showed that each of the three interviewed groups has its own common characteristics. The insight into their attitude towards religion, tradition, the role of women in the private sphere and the place of women in society is particularly significant. In order to make the position of Muslim women and the changes that have occurred clearer to readers, the paper also presents a brief insight into the Muslim women’s issue in the 20th and 21st centuries.